Chicago's City Bureau used Genius to contextualize the Task Force's recommendations.

Laquan McDonald was shot 16 times by Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke on October 20, 2014. More than 13 months later, and after a number of independent investigations asked for records to be released, the footage from the dashboard camera of Van Dyke’s car was made public. While a police union official had originally told the Chicago Tribune that McDonald had “lunged at police” before Van Dyke opened fire, the video proved that to be untrue. Van Dyke was subsequently charged with first-degree murder.

Following the video’s release, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel announced the creation of a task force to review the accountability, oversight and training systems for Chicago’s police officers. Emmanuel stated that “the shooting of Laquan McDonald requires more than just words. It requires that we act; that we take more concrete steps to prevent such abuses in the future, secure the safety and the rights of all Chicagoans, and build stronger bonds of trust between our police and the communities they’re sworn to serve.”

News Genius partnered with Chicago’s City Bureau, the Invisible Institute and Smart Chicago to annotate the Task Force’s report, titled “Recommendations for Reform: Restoring Trust between the Chicago Police and the Communities they Serve.” The annotations here cover every section of the report, from Community and Youth Relations, to Mental Health Response, and the document’s overarching recommendations., and add analysis, context, and Chicago history to the 200 or so recommendations it makes.